Mr. Chak Yuk Alan Yu

Recipient of the Ramon Cugat and Montse Garcia Research Scholarship

I am extremely grateful and honored for this precious opportunity. I am thankful to Dr. Arthur Mak, from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and to Dr. Savio Woo, MSRC, University of Pittsburgh, for this invaluable research experience.

During my internship, my main task was to participate in the project, “Corrosion Characterization of Pure Magnesium Coated by Micro-Arc Oxidation (MAO)”, with my mentor, Ms. Jonquil R. Mau, by studying the corrosion characteristic of magnesium using in vitro and electrochemical testing. While at the MSRC, I learned 1) that to be a good researcher, everything must be handled carefully, precisely, and safely; 2) how to have effective reading skills and critically analyze a study; 3) how to be patient; and 4) how to improve my communication skills, presentation skills and to make an effective PowerPoint presentation.

Lastly, I would like to thank Dr. Woo, and Dr. Mak for providing this opportunity and to Dr. Ramon Cugat, Dr. Montsé Garcia, and ASIAM Institute for the support to explore this exciting area of research.